I did the Ekos 2, new MC cart in one hit needed a good phonostage to go.with it. I took a punt and went for Tom Evans phonostage blind. I saw the new version costs £5000 new and thought a used one at £1350 was a good deal.
I couldn’t afford to do Radikal and an MC phonostage at that time.
Not everyone likes Urika or Linn amplification. I have heard the LP12 Klimax with full 500 system. I guess that was my dream, and still is!
Love them both they are just different but there is something about the ARO/Geddon combo ( my long suffering dealer agrees) that sucks you in , even though the Urika/Radikal is more detailed but can be on the “cold” side sometimes
I’m happy with my system now and it’s not going to change for a good while. In future it’s likely to get simpler because my mind always drifts back to reducing box count, to reduce future servicing costs if nothing else and maybe with a new pair of speakers, unleash the potential of my front end.
Radikal and Urika would be my first step in a couple of years maybe (funds permitting) followed possibly by SCM40a speakers to replace 135s/Keilidhs although I am nowhere near wanting this bit to even think about going to listen to a pair and they would have to be significantly better in any case.
Looking forward to reading a review by you on the Radikal . Good luck and all the best.
Doing a rough conversion into Aussie dollars looks as though the NSS 333 Streamer will be in the vicinity of say $18k taking into account duty , tax etc maybe more . 332 preamp similar
I’m not thinking about power supplies for the foreseeable future! When I did my demo I listened to the three and four boxes without power supplies and both sounded fantastic to me, it was a bit of an eye opener tbh. The great thing with the NC systems is the power supplies are common and optional, nothing apart from money and space preventing them being added in the future. Very smart thinking from Naim there.
As for making the choice between the systems you’ve listed there, that’s a really tough one isn’t it?! I think if it were me and I had the space that you have (the pics of you cutting up your sofa were priceless ) I’d probably go for the 500 kit, that has to be the ultimate reachable system (assuming Statement isn’t feasible ). Your current system through those speakers must sound fantastic so that makes the choice even harder.
The reality for me is that I don’t have the space for a 500 system, never mind the funds. At the start of last year I thought I’d likely try to go to the top of the Classic range, then the 200 series was released followed by rumours of the 300 series so I decided to wait and carry on saving. I’m glad I did because these new boxes really fit with what I was looking for, a big jump in performance with less boxes, the optional power supplies are a bonus along with the modern ‘lifestyle’ features (that I appreciate more than I thought I would) … and the new case design, they are stunning
I reckon you should just enjoy your system and the music … for now at least